Wednesday, December 05, 2007

Atheism, comics, writing, video games

Well, that should cover everything.Let's go down the list:Atheism: Interestingly, more and more people I'm talking to are, apparently, atheists. This gives me great hope for the future. I want to make something very clear here. I am not anti-religion, in that I believe YOU get to believe whatever you want. However, you don't get to use that as a defense when someone challenges you on some position you've taken, or worse, voted on. At best, all religion can provide in such a debate is an end to it. 1:"I am pro-choice because, ultimately, this is a biological process, a small collection of cells that is part of a woman's body. That makes it her choice."2: "Well, I'm pro-life because God says that is a person with a soul"Effectively, thats like saying "nyah nyah nyah, I'm not listening". There really is no point in continuing the discussion.

Also, having spent some time thinknig about it, I am very disappointed in Pascal.

Comics: 52. I want to get through 52. I know its important. I know that buying the trades makes it easier. But it just won't end. And I just don't care.Further, Powers continues to rock.

Writing: Dunno why this was in the list. I am, however, starting to get into photography. Well, mostly into Photoshop more than actually taking pictures. I'm pretty good at it, too.

Video Games: Yes, Rock Band does, in fact, rock. However...Mass Effect. Are there some crappy mechanics? Sure. Are the manual and tutorials woefully insufficient? Definitely. Is it the best RPG of all time? Quite possibly.Now, it simply isn't fair to compare this game to others in the past. The 360 does, in fact, have a ton more power, and yadda yadda. But it is apparent that this thing was a labor of love for BioWare. The writing, the dialog, the environments (except for the fact that planetary outpots tend to get a little repetative...even that may make sense), the twists and side quests, the depth each of the characters possesses, these are the things that make an RPG great. And in these aspects, I've never encountered anything close to Mass Effect. FFX, KOTOR and KOTOR II, Oblivion, nothing.So, my new top 5 games (in no particular order)Mass EffectResident Evil 4Final Fantasy XKOTOR I and IIGod Of War I and II